The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1887-01-21
TEE DRILL OF THE GHOSTS.

An Ola Sergeant ou rae Plains Tells q
StcaI,so story % G overnor's Hand.
''The strange=t evrerfauco ever
had" 4slid tse old -er-aaut. was at
Old Fort William. on Governors Isl
and, iu New York h-rJor, over twenty
= was a sergeant at the time. mar
ried. and. with my young wife had
been living in a small house on the
lower end of the island, but thc com
manding officer concluded to tear it
down, and ! was told to select the
best rooms of the non-cOmmjSSiOucd
officers quarters in the then unoccu-
pied fort.
What with my usual military duties
and the fatigue Of moving and placing
things to rights. l was pretty we'll tired
out when night came, and slept like
log.
NV wife was worn out, too, but
did not sleep 50 sound as not to be
disturbed every night by what she
called the funniest noises that sound
ed lust like thunder, but l paid but
little attention to her thinking it was
ONLY the noise OF passing steamboats,
or the wash of the waters on the
shore.
1t might have been two weeks af-
ter | had settled down that one night
I awoke suddenly from 4 sound sleep
with that peculiar feeling of dread or
an uuknown cause and has been OK
periencel 10y nearly all Of us.
John. do you hear It now" asked
nv wife when she discovered I was
awake; it sounds like some persons
at work below
80 Listening for a short time. I rec
oguized familiar sounds. and had I not
been positive that the doors were
locked with the keys hanging on a
nail in my room, I would have sworn
that the batteries were manned by eI-
Pericnced gunners.
The quick tread Of the men as
they dragged the guns In, the ring of
the rammer. the handling Of the shot
that lay piled in readiness for use.
the return OF the iron wheels over the
rails as it was run out OF the port
were perfect in every detail, only lack
Ing the words Of command and the
report OF the piece to complete the
Illusion.
As I listened the uproar increased
in volume until it was impossible for
US 20 hear each others voices without
raising them to high pitch.
The guns were served with what
seemed Incredible rapidity, and the
very walls. massive "a they were,
tTembled under the heavy artillery in
continual motion, while the balls were
rolling from one end Of the easements
to the other, striking the sides with
heavy thuds.
Unable to stand this state Of af-
fairs any longer, I arose and, lighting
my lantern, took the keys along with
q loaded revolver. and, descending the
stairs a. lightly as possible. reached
the door Tho noise at this point was
II anything, more deafening than when
left my room.
Cautiously inserting the key into
the lock, l cooked my six-shooter, and
a.. u
raised lantern and weapon presented,
entered the nearest easement to find
it uuoccupied save by the grim old
gun and the shot stacked in their
usual places.
" It was the same In every battery
l entered. Not q footprint disturbed
the thick dust upon the floor, nor was
there a finger mark upon either the
gun OF the shot. The tompions were
in place, and no carriage had travelled
over the rusty rails.
Confounded even still more than I
was before, I returned to my room,
and wac disturbed no more that night.
The racket. however, was commenced
again the following night, and was
kept up, with slight. intermission, for
month.
Ny account of this singular dis
turbance was met with tests and laugh
ter from my fellow soldiers which
roDOrated 1t by my wife, but then only
so far as to declare that it was
q scheme on our part to get removed
from uncomfortable quarters to one
OF the new quarters then about COM
pleted
"NettIed at their taunts, I vowed
that il ever the noises commenced
again l would have other witnesses
to them, and 1 did not have long to
walt, Tor about one month after I was
awakened by the phantom gunners.
This time l passed out over the
drawbridge and, going to the mems
quarters, awakened a sergeant by the
name OF Smith, and much against his
will made him accompany me to the
scene.
q" After standing listening to the
racket until Smiths face was as white
as sheet and he was trembling from
head 70 foot, [ threw open the door.
" Smith always declared that for a
moment he saw the shostly crew at
their places, but could detect nothing.
nor could l ever discover any cause
for the disturbance, although I often
was awakened by the nightly drill of
my invisible artillervmen
g some months after leaving the ISL
and learned that during the Mexican
war an artillery company drilled with
these guns some time before they left
Tor Mexico, and that they were nearly
all killed in battle. I suppose IT must
have been freak OF theirs to have
their reunions in those easements and
practice with their old friends, the
guns. - Minneapolis Tribune.